Managing Employee Performance & Conduct (11/14) Flashcards
(20 cards)
When appropriate, all supervisors should strive to resolve minor performance/conduct problems without the use of discipline.
True or False
True
The purpose of discipline is to maintain order and efficiency in the organization. Appropriate discipline provides motivation to employees to respect departmental values and adhere to department policies, procedures, rules and regulations. in some cases, discharge, rather than intermediate discipline, may be the only appropriate action.
N/A
COUNSELING–Most minor issues can be corrected with counseling. This counseling should be done in private and should be instructive; however, in certain situations, it may be appropriate to have another supervisor present.
True or False
True
The supervisor should document any counseling session that occurs with his/her employees. A record of the counseling session, which is referred to as a CONTACT REPORT, will be maintained in the employee’s performance file.
True or False
True
Counseling is designed to correct problems at their root and alleviate the need for discipline. Supervisors should use this non-disciplinary corrective action liberally. in all circumstances, subordinates should be reminded it is the supervisors goal and objective to ensure the employees success in an assigned position. Contact reports are still considered a corrective measure.
N/A
A contact report is merely documentation of the counseling that occurred, so it should be completed after your conversation with the employee.
For minor performance issues, the supervisor is required to have at least two (2) documented counseling sessions before moving to a statement of complaint that may lead to discipline.
Contact reports will be purged from SEPF one year from the date of issuance. however, if the contact report is connected to a disciplinary issue, it will be kept until any appeal process has been exhausted.
N/A
Supervisory Intervention form will be used when allegations are minor in nature, do not require discipline as set out by the disciplinary decision guide and would best be addressed with supervisory intervention through coaching, counseling, mentoring, mediation, or any component of the Early Identification and Intervention Program.
N/A
If an investigation is to be completed, the employee will be provided an “Employee notification of Internal Investigation.” This document is given to commissioned officers per NRS as well as civilian employees.provided to both subject and witness employees. Fourty-eight (48) hours notice will be given to all employees.
N/A
Statutory guidelines required in Employee Notification of Internal Investigation:
A. Name and rank required for investigating officer.
B. All persons present at the interview, to include inform employee of name of person conducting interview.
C. The employee is entitled to two (2) representatives during the interview. Not witnesses to incident. Witnesses are allowed representation during an interview.
Important: notice should not include any specific citation of a department procedure, policy or regulation. This will be determined one investigation is completed.
N/A
Internal affairs will determine whether they or the affected bureau will conduct the investigation. IA will investigate allegation of a serious nature that may lead to a suspension or greater issues and anything that comes from the CRB.
N/A
If subject employee choses to waive rights per NRS 289, the supervisor is guided by the following:
1) if subject employee wants to talk to the supervisor or internal affairs immediately after notice and waivers rights with respect to reasonable notice, the interview may only proceed if PPA or employee lawyer is available to sit in on the interview.
2) If employee does not want representation, the employee may not waive the 48 hour notice as specified above. This limitation is done to allow PPA to speak with employee before any interview to reconsider.
N/A
INVESTIGATIVE GUIDLINES:
A. It is important to not determine the outcome of an investigation prior to evaluating all the available facts.
B. Employees should be given reasonable breaks during an interview and interviews should not go beyond four (4) hours unless mutual agreement to do so.
C. Do not fall into police mode when conducting interviews. There is never any reason for anger or frustration to surface in an employee interview. Tactics used in criminal investigation are not necessary or acceptable in an employee investigation.
D. If you are so emotionally attached to an investigation that you will be unable to complete without bias, you should request it be completed by other supervisor or IA.
N/A
SUSTAINED FINDINGS:
For a sustained finding, the clear and convincing standard must be met, except for diversity investigations which the burden is preponderance of the evidence.
CLEAR AND CONVINCING: The conduct was substantially more likely than not to have occurred.
PREPONDERANCE OF THE EVIDENCE: The greater the weight of the evidence; superior evidentiary weight that not sufficient to free the mind wholly of all reasonable doubt, is still sufficient to incline a fair and impartial mind to one side of the issue rather than the other.
N/A
INVESTIGATIVE SUMMARY:
The description of your investigation should be written in third person?
True or False
True
SUPERVISORY RESPONSIBILITIES/AFTER INVESTIGATION IS COMPLETE:
1) Check work history
2) Check decision handbook
3) Determine discipline
4) Complete adjudication of complaint
5) Process adjudication of complaint
N/A
LEVELS OF DISCIPLINE:
1) WRITTEN REPRIMANDS: first level of discipline. Appropriate after 2 or more contacts; however not always necessary.
2) TRANSFER TO DIFFERENT ASSIGNMENTS: Consult with Labor relations.
3) SUSPENSION: This is first, second or third level of discipline. 8 hour increments. 40 hours or more must be authorized by Sheriff. Less than 40 hours delegated to chain of command below Sheriff. MINOR–8 to 32 hours. MAJOR–40 hours.
4) REMOVAL FROM PROMOTIONAL LIST: Considered a major.
5) DEMOTION/REDUCTION IN GRADE: Considered a major.
6) TERMINATION: This is the first, second, third or fourth level of discipline. Must be approved by Assistant Sheriff or designee prior to proceeding to pre termination hearing or discipline board.
N/A
DISCIPLINARY DECISION GUIDE:
If no consensus between chain of command or labor relations on level of discipline applied, as set out by guide; a meeting will be held with appropriate Deputy Chief and Deputy Chief of the Professional Standards Division in order to come to a resolution.
N/A
MITIGATING OR AGGRAVATING FACTORS:
Whenever mitigating or aggravating factors are being considered, it is a good practice to discuss them with your chain and Labor Relations before finalizing your decision. The purpose is to ensure consistency.
N/A
OTHER DISCIPLINARY CONSIDERATIONS:
SUSPENSION WITH OPTION: Using vacation hours in lieu of suspension. Option may be used even when the suspension does not fit perfectly with employees work shedule.
HOURS HELD IN ABEYANCE: The supervisor may offer an employee the opportunity to defer some suspension by participating in treatment or related program to address the problem. No more than HALF can be hours held in abeyance.
TRAINING: Its not appropriate to incorporate training into a discipline adjudication. As a supervisor, you believe an employee can benefit from extra training, you have a management right to require such training and can direct this outside the discipline process.
N/A
PROCESSING AN ADJUDICATION OF COMPLAINT:
The communication between the supervisor and the employee which occurs when the employee is being the Adjudication of Complaint should be documented in a CONTACT REPORT and placed into employees performance file.
It is important that the employee, you, and other supervisors are able to determine what the employee did wrong and why they received the level of discipline when the document is viewed t a later date or the incident needs to be recorded in the performance appraisal.
N/A
